What would you do with "cream"?

[lisavf]

Last week at my farm market, I bought a container of what was labeled "cream" from the raw milk seller, thinking it looked like an interesting find. It's in a plastic tub container, what looks to be maybe about two cups of very thick cream (not as hard as butter, not as soft as yogurt - spoonable but not spreadable). I tasted it, and it tastes like... cream. But I've never seen cream this thick. It looks positively luscious. I want to treat it right. What would YOU do with such a find?

[luckyfatima]

This is what real cream looks like. When I visit my husband's family in Pakistan, they get cream like this from the door-to-door milk vendor. In my husband's family, they just spread it on toast. When I lived in the Middle East, I visited homes in which this kind of cream was served at the break fast table, sometimes drizzled with honey, and eaten with flat bread. Also, once I had a delicious honey and avocado shake topped with a scoop (not a drizzle) of fresh cream. Delicious memories!

[KayceeK]

Porridge + cream + brown sugar = heaven.

[nihongojoe]

That's easy: Give it to me! WTB raw milk seller. All the local milk I can get is UHT pasteurized and won't curdle at the right temp to make ricotta.

[sandylc]

Whipped with vanilla and sugar and eaten with fresh berries!

[maka100]

If you bought the cream from the raw milk seller it shouldn't be pasteurized, therefore no need to add the cultured sour cream, it already contains the necessary bacterias. Since you bought it last week and it is very thick, it is probably in the early stage of sour cream. Treat it as you would creme fraiche, garnish fruits, cobblers, finish soups, it won't cradle.

[LaLa]

cream biscuits...oh my!
http://www.thedailymeal.com/rachels-v...

[lisavf]

Thanks, these are some great ideas! I guess the consistency is what had me stumped. Eating it just as is might be a little weird (I tried a little just to see) because it is soooo thick and not a lot of flavor, just really creamy and smooth on the tongue.

Regarding making ricotta, can someone share their method? It sounds like I could make a luscious sweet ricotta with it, the kind you would use in cannolli or other desserts.

[TDEL]

You can make butter. Homemade butter with raw cream is a delight.

[charles_sills]

Take a cup of the cream, and a cup of the best active cultured sour cream you can find. mix together, add a tablespoon of kosher salt, then let it sit on your counter for 4 or 5 hours. you end up with this thick, velvety luscious cream that i use in place of mexican crema.

[wattacetti]

And you can eat it straight - on top of berries, on top of tartar, straight with a spoon.

[biondanonima]

+1. I wouldn't cook with such a treasure - I'd eat it straight up! Lightly sweetened on pie would be about as far as I'd fool with it. YUM!

[goodhealthgourmet]

+2. something so pure & luscious deserves to be enjoyed in its native state. dollop it on scones, pie, fresh or poached fruit, mousse, pavlova, pasta with herbs...

[wyogal]

That's what cream used to be like before commercial "cream." You could bake with it, use it in cakes, or get some self-rising flour, and make biscuits (just the cream and the sr flour), or heat it, curdle it, and make some very rich ricotta!

[babette feasts]

I have found that too much fat will interfere with the ricotta curdling, and that whole milk plus just a little heavy cream works best for me using the heat then add lemon juice or vinegar method. Do you have a secret for making extra rich ricotta?

[biondanonima]

When I want my ricotta extra rich, I make it with whole milk as usual, then drain off a bit more of the whey than I normally would. Once it's cooled, I mix in heavy cream to taste - the drier curds sort of absorb the cream and it creates a really luscious texture. I find that adding the cream to the milk before curdling makes the ricotta pasty and heavy.

[Becca Porter]

You should look at this Smitten Kitchen post:

http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/06/ric...

It produces amazing rich ricotta.